


10 PM

by Secondprinces (CrimeBrulee)



Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: It's 2 am and I'm really tired idkhow to tag this, M/M, modern au but kind of depressing I guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-02
Updated: 2020-05-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:08:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23961292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrimeBrulee/pseuds/Secondprinces
Summary: Discarding his briefcase by the table, Chrom tiptoed down the hallway.  He’d learned every creak and every groan of the hardwood floors between the kitchen and the bedroom.  He knew how to wrap his hand around the doorknob without jiggling it.  Knew how to ease the door open so that the hinges didn’t whine.--Chrobin drabble, modern AU
Relationships: Chrom/My Unit | Reflet | Robin, chrobin
Comments: 2
Kudos: 59





	10 PM

**Author's Note:**

> I don't really know.... ;;;

“Honey, I’m home,” Chrom whispered, easing the door shut behind him and kicking his shoes off. The sun had just barely slunk beneath the horizon by 7pm, but every curtain was already drawn and the house pitch black. He paused by the table, briefcase still in hand.

Robin had left a note for him, in his precise little scrawl.

_Check the fridge for leftovers. I made too much lasagna. Also, maintenance stopped by with regards to the water heater finally._

“Score,” Chrom said, digging through the fridge and snapping the lid open to investigate. ‘

Robin wasn’t necessarily a prodigy in the kitchen, but he did due diligence and could follow a recipe. Every once in a while he’d leave dinner for Chrom—and on days that he didn’t, Chrom made sure to make a little extra for Robin the next day. It made for a variety of meals, as neither of them really coordinated their grocery shopping.

Chrom checked his watch and shoved the Tupperware back in between the orange juice and eggs. Hunger gnawed at him, but he’d wait.

He winced as the fridge squawked shut.

Discarding his briefcase by the table, Chrom tiptoed down the hallway. He’d learned every creak and every groan of the hardwood floors between the kitchen and the bedroom. He knew how to wrap his hand around the doorknob without jiggling it. Knew how to ease the door open so that the hinges didn’t whine.

Without turning on the lights, Chrom felt his way toward the dresser and tugged a drawer open. The bar of light from the hallway cast just enough of a glow across the room that he could find his sweatpants. It also illuminated the pile of blankets in the center of the bed.

A singular foot stuck out somewhere in the middle.

Chrom smiled fondly. 

He ducked into the bathroom to change out of his suit and tie, leaving them draped over a chair in the corner of the room. Then he slipped out of the bedroom again and set himself up on the couch with the tv as quiet as possible.

“Thank god for subtitles,” he murmured, masking a yawn with the back of his hand. He sank into a post-work stupor, sorting the mail on his lap in a pile of blankets of his own. Once he’d finished that, he propped himself up on a pillow, rattling a newspaper open to skim the headlines.

He must have fallen asleep, because the next thing he knew, his hand was draped over the edge of the couch and the newspaper on the ground. The television screen pulsed with the title sequence to Jeopardy. Chrom stared blankly as the host rapid fired through a few questions.

Chrom sat up with another yawn and stretched his hands over his head.

“What is a Metal Detector?”

Chrom twisted around. “Oh, hey, did I wake you?”

“My alarm did,” Robin said. He leaned against the threshold of the living room, caught in a yawn. His hair was just barely toweled dry. A blanket draped down around his shoulders and brushed against the floor like a cape. It covered the pair of deep purple scrubs Robin had designated as his Tuesday scrubs.

Chrom checked his watch. _10:00pm._ Wow, he’d slept a lot longer than he’d thought. “You sleep okay?”

Robin nodded. “Yeah, for the most part. The blackout curtains helped a lot, but I had to be awake to let maintenance in around 3 and it was a royal pain in the ass.”

“Yeah,” Chrom said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry about that…”

“It’s not your fault,” Robin murmured. “Did you already eat dinner?”

Chrom’s stomach lurched with a fresh wave of hunger. “No, not yet. I fell asleep.”

“You must be starving,” Robin said, clicking his tongue as he shook his head. “You realize that you don’t have to wait on me—"

He padded toward the kitchen, but Chrom caught his wrist as his arm swung by. “I prefer to eat together, is all,” Chrom said, “we should at least get one meal a day together, right?”

Robin rubbed sleep from his eyes, but smiled blearily. “You’re right. And I look forward to it, always.” He paused to peck Chrom on the lips. “You see my note?”

“Yep!” Chrom said. “Do you want me to make you some pancakes or something? You need your energy.” He followed him into the kitchen, hand still interlaced with Robin’s. 

“I think I’ll just have cereal for now. I packed a lunch for later and some snacks.” He left the blanket draped over the back of his chair to dig through the fridge, setting out Chrom’s leftovers and the milk. 

“Just don’t accidentally microwave the milk instead of the lasagna,” Chrom teased, reaching overhead to grab the cereal down from the top of the fridge. It clattered into the bowl as he poured it for Robin. He topped it off with milk, chucked a spoon in, and spun around to set it at Robin’s spot at the table. 

Robin ducked under him to pop the lasagna into the microwave. It whirred, the noise lost in the hum of crickets and tree frogs in the thick of night. He’d peaked out the window, but could see little else than streetlights illuminating their neighborhood. When the microwave beeped, he shoved a fork into the lasagna and slid it to Chrom.

They took their seats opposite one another. 

“How was work today?” Robin asked. He prodded his cereal with his spoon to evenly coat it with milk, and ate with big, slow bites.

“Ah, you know,” Chrom said, fanning his mouth when the lasagna burned his tongue. Something about the microwave always left the core lukewarm but the outside molten hot-- “I had that presentation that I’d been crunching for all weekend. I think it went well. The boss really liked my ideas for expanding the advertising department.”

“I told you that he would,” Robin said. “Does that mean you’ll be in line for that promotion?”

“I think so—” Chrom said. He grinned in spite of himself, practically vibrating in his chair. “But I have to play it cool until I know for sure. I don’t want to come off as arrogant or anything like that, I just think that I have a decent shot at it is all.”

“I’m sure you’ll get it,” Robin said. “And when you do, we’ll have to make sure to celebrate. We can do it on my day off. Get dinner at a proper restaurant.”

Chrom’s expression softened. “You think you’ll be up for that? I know that work is exhausting for you.”

“I think so,” Robin said. “I can always make up the sleep later.” 

“I’d love that,” Chrom said. “So, anything exciting happen to you since last we spoke?”

“No, just the same out ER bullshit. I swear people are getting more creative with their injuries lately. A man came in with a giant fishhook through his arm. It was…nasty. The whole situation makes a solid case against fishing. How this happened _in the middle of the night_ , I’ll never understand, though.” 

Chrom winced. “This is why I could never do that job.”

“Fainting at the sight of blood would definitely make it difficult,” Robin teased. He set his spoon down with the last bite of cereal, rubbing his eyes again. Dark circles cut into the tender skin there.

“You’re tired,” Chrom said.

“It’s a tiring job. And the neighborhood doesn’t exactly sleep at the same time that I do.” Robin swallowed another yawn and turned around to pop a K-cup into the Keurig. “But, we gotta pay the bills and we gotta eat, so a cog in the machine we must be.”

“We make it work,” Chrom said. He stood to place the sauce-smeared plate in the sink, pausing to take and rinse Robin’s bowl as well. 

Then, he leaned against the counter and watched as Robin cradled his mug in his hands and took quiet sips of coffee.

It had been easier in college, Chrom thought. When the pair had had all the time in the world to goof off and party and study and ditch class together. _Damn_ , he never should have taken that time for granted.

Then real life had happened and yes, Chrom had managed to get a ring on Robin’s finger, but if it wasn’t the car breaking down, it was _something_ else—and the countless hours of work they poured into just rent and student loans and everything else sapped the hours from the day. Then it was sleep and rinse and repeat.

But these few hours in the evening, after Chrom’s shift and before Robin’s? 

Chrom wouldn’t trade it for the world. 

“What are you smiling about?” Robin asked, cocking his head.

Chrom shook his head. “Oh—nothing—I mean, just thinking about how much I love you.”

A warmth lit Robin’s eyes. “Was it the lasagna bribe that finally won you over?”

Chrom chuckled. “It might have helped.” He pushed off of the counter and leaned down to press his mouth to Robin’s, lingering there as his breath skimmed Robin’s lips with each kiss. His hand rested on his cheek. When he finally pulled away, he was breathless. “Have a good day at work today, yeah? I’ll see you again same time same place.”

Robin hummed. “Get some sleep. I love you.”

Chrom kissed him one last time. “This won’t be forever, you know.”

“I know,” Robin said. “And even if it does last a long time, I’m not unhappy. I cherish what time we do spend together.”

Chrom hummed. “I do too.” He padded down the hall and settled into the pile of blankets that Robin had been in, wrapping around one of the pillows there. They still smelled like him. He took a deep breath. 

By the time Robin got home from work, Chrom would already be on the commute to his own again.

And rinse and repeat.

But there was always 10pm.  
  
There was always their little routine.


End file.
